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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29039262">A Better Wolf Moon</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkJediQueen/pseuds/DarkJediQueen'>DarkJediQueen</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Very Sterek Winter Fest [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Teen Wolf (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>A Very Sterek Winter Fest 2021, Alternate Universe, Bad Parent Sheriff Stilinski, M/M, One-Shot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 05:15:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,805</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29039262</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkJediQueen/pseuds/DarkJediQueen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Wandering the Preserve just after sunset, Stiles found something that changes everything.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Very Sterek Winter Fest [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2123724</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>336</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>A Very Sterek Winter 2021</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Better Wolf Moon</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p><strong>Year</strong>: January 2005<br/><strong>Spoilers</strong>: Everything<br/><strong>Notes</strong>: For A Very Sterek Winter Fest 2021 Theme of Wolf Moon. This is a completed One-shot. There will be no more written in the universe. <br/><strong>Beta</strong>: ScarsLikeVelvet</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Stiles hated it when he couldn't sleep for days on end, and his tiredness stopped him from sleeping at all. He pulled his jacket around his body a little tighter as he made his way through the Preserve. Last he had looked, it was after six in the evening. He knew that he shouldn't be out there, but it was better than being stuck at home. His father was drinking again. He had started the moment he got home. He hadn't been drunk yet when Stiles had left, but he didn't want to be around when his father noticed he wasn't asleep. Stiles couldn't help it. He gripped his phone tightly, debating calling someone to come and get him, but he decided against it.</p>
<p>"They are never going to know what hit them," a voice said.</p>
<p>Stiles pushed himself into the tree, glad that he wasn't wearing one of his brighter coats. The hoodie was green, not quite as green as the land around him, given it was winter, but enough that it wasn't that out of place as orange would be.</p>
<p>"Have you figured out what they did to need to have this done to them?" another guy asked.</p>
<p>"No clue, but I don't really care. It's like the fire to beat all fires," the first guy said.</p>
<p>Stiles waited until the guys passed him before he slipped out from behind the tree. He saw the two guys headed toward where he knew the Hale house was. He followed along behind them, hoping that they were making enough noise to cover any he would make. They weren't all that stealthy, really, if they were heading out to burn a house down.</p>
<p>"So why them?" the second guy asked.</p>
<p>"They aren't what you think," a woman said.</p>
<p>"So they are like serial killers?" the first guy asked.</p>
<p>The woman laughed, and it sent a chill down Stiles' back. He pulled his phone from his pocket and looked to make sure that he had enough bars. He would need to call the station. He wasn't calling his father. He had only a single shot before Stiles had left the house, but that just wasn't something that Stiles was doing. He followed them all the way until they were too close to the Hale house. There were the sounds of what seemed like a party coming from the basement area. There were lights down there and what sounded like a dog howling.</p>
<p>Stiles ran back some to get enough distance. He dialed the non-emergency line as then he would get someone he knew.</p>
<p>"Beacon Hills Police Department, Deputy Wilcox speaking."</p>
<p>"You need to get to the Hale house without lights and sirens. I think that someone is walking up to set the house on fire," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Stiles, what are you doing?"</p>
<p>"I went for a walk since Dad's at home and acting strange. I heard two guys talking about fire and then followed them. They just met up with a woman and said they would set the Hale house on fire. There is a party going on, and they are all in the basement," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"We will go with lights and sirens off. Stiles, if this a cry wolf scenario, your father will be livid."</p>
<p>Stiles didn't say that his father was livid just looking at him these days.</p>
<p>"I'm not lying." Stiles hung up the phone and rushed back to where the house was. The woman was spreading something in a circle around the house while the two guys seemed to be hanging back. It was only after the woman had finished off spreading the stuff on the ground that she moved toward the house. The guys followed, spreading gasoline around the base of the house, and then the woman stepped back and lit a match. She tossed it down and waited.</p>
<p>Stiles saw the flames start. He tried to find his voice, but it wouldn't come. He ran around to the side of the trees on the other side, closer to where he could hear the people having fun.</p>
<p>"FIRE!" Stiles yelled. He hoped that someone heard him. "GET OUT! FIRE!"</p>
<p>"Who is the brat?" one of the guys said.</p>
<p>"I don't know. All of the Hales are inside. It's their big holiday for the year," the woman said.</p>
<p>Stiles ran away, getting some distance between him and the woman. He heard a sound that he knew well, a gun's safety being taken off.</p>
<p>"Mountain Ash!" someone else yelled.</p>
<p>Stiles had no clue why someone would be yelling about a tree. He ran back around to see that everyone was still in the basement from what he could see from the windows. The house was not fully engulfed in flames yet, but no one left the basement.</p>
<p>"You won't be able to save them, little one. They are trapped like rats in a drowning ship." The woman sounded like she was still closer to where Stiles had been. He ran to the house and prayed that the door was unlocked. He pushed open the door and ran inside. He found the basement door and tried to breathe through his shirt to ensure he didn't inhale smoke. There wasn't a lot yet, but it was getting thicker.</p>
<p>A line of ash was on the doorway to the basement. He kicked at it, and it disappeared. He felt something strange happen when he did that. He then unlocked the door, but it still didn't move.</p>
<p>"Hello!" Stiles yelled.</p>
<p>The sound of feet on the stairs told Stiles that someone got close to the door.</p>
<p>"I can't get the door open, but I broke the line of weird ash."</p>
<p>"Step back," someone said.</p>
<p>Stiles got really far away. He had seen how doors could go flying in movies when people kicked them in. The door creaked, and then it exploded away from the wall and hit the wall on the opposite side. A man was standing there, looking around. He was covered in soot already.</p>
<p>"Who are you?"</p>
<p>"Dude, the house is burning. Let's go."</p>
<p>The man nodded his head, turned back around, and yelled something in a strange language down to the lower area. A woman appeared with two kids in her arms, and they were so very young. Next was another woman with another kid as well as more adults. Stiles counted eight people coming up from the basement.</p>
<p>"Where did you come in?" the man asked.</p>
<p>"Back door. The woman chased me into the woods to catch me after I yelled fire. I called the cops already, and they are coming without lights and sirens."</p>
<p>"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" the woman yelled from outside.</p>
<p>The smoke was getting thicker, and Stiles didn't know what to do.</p>
<p>"Peter, take the kids and this brave young man and take them to the tunnel."</p>
<p>"The tunnel, tunnel?" the man, Peter, asked.</p>
<p>"Yes."</p>
<p>"Okay." Peter reached out and held out his arms for Stiles, but Stiles just shook his head. He didn't need to be carried like a baby. He followed behind the man who took them into what looked like an office. Half of one wall was starting to burn, but it hadn't made it into the rest of the room yet. He walked to a bookshelf and pulled a book, and a bookcase started to move.</p>
<p>"Let me go first," Stiles said. He thought about the line that had kept them all in the basement.</p>
<p>"I will go first," another man said. He handed off the child he was carrying to Peter. It was the same little boy that the other woman had carried up from the basement. "Then you can follow me, young man."</p>
<p>"Okay." Stiles looked at Peter, who nodded his head. Stiles followed behind the other man as he started down the stairs. It was pitch black in there, but Stiles only ran into the guy a few times.</p>
<p>"No ash," the man yelled.</p>
<p>Stiles could hear the rest of the people following along behind them. In a moment, Peter was right there, hand on Stiles' shoulder, helping him in the darkness. Stiles didn't know how the guy could actually see in the dark.</p>
<p>"I hear gunfire," someone said.</p>
<p>"I called the police and asked them to come without lights and sirens," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Why?"</p>
<p>"Cause I heard that woman talking about setting fire to this place. Well, I heard the guys first, and I followed them. I was out walking because I didn't want to be home."</p>
<p>"Where is Cora?" someone asked.</p>
<p>"Cora?" Stiles asked. He hadn't even thought about her. Cora wasn't with the rest of them.</p>
<p>"She was upset at her mother for not letting her go with Derek and Laura. She was in her room, and then I heard her go outside about an hour ago," someone said.</p>
<p>"I'll check for her in the hiding place," the guy who had gone first said.</p>
<p>Stiles was a little lost since he had no idea who most of these people were. He followed along until he was let out into what looked like a clearing in the Preserve.</p>
<p>"Okay, we need to have the deputies get this young man home."</p>
<p>"Stiles," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Excuse me?" Peter asked.</p>
<p>"I said Stiles, not a young man. Stiles."</p>
<p>"Stiles as in Stiles Stilinski?" the one guy asked.</p>
<p>"Yup."</p>
<p>"Well, that will help us," Peter said. He looked down at Stiles with a smile on his face.</p>
<p>"Peter, go and see if the Sheriff has arrived. If he called in, they know he is here. They are going to freak out. Don't tell them where we are," the other man said.</p>
<p>"Sure," Peter said. He looked at the man before crouching down in front of Stiles. "Stiles, we need to move fast. I need to carry you. Piggyback?" Peter asked.</p>
<p>"Um, sure?" Stiles said. He wasn't sure. He looked at the adults around him, but all of them seemed just happy to be alive.</p>
<p>"How about I lift you?" the one guy asked Stiles.</p>
<p>"Please."</p>
<p>Stiles clung to Peter's neck, and the man held him under his legs. He took off fast enough that Stiles screamed a little, but all Peter did was laugh. They were moving faster than normal people could move. Stiles knew as he had been riding on Wilcox's back for a long time.</p>
<p>"NOAH!" Wilcox yelled.</p>
<p>Stiles saw his father turn around, and he dropped to his knees at the sight of Stiles on Peter's back. Peter walked over to him and handed Stiles over.</p>
<p>"My family is safe, but until I can guarantee no threat, I am not telling you where," Peter said.</p>
<p>"The three suspects were found still outside of the house, taunting and screaming at the people inside, only when the first firefighters got there, they found no one but one did find what looked like a door leading out of an office that was open but had part of the house collapsed on it," Noah said.</p>
<p>"That's the way that we went, yes."</p>
<p>Peter looked at Roberts, and Stiles saw them have a conversation with facial expressions and eyebrows. Whatever it was that had them trapped by the powder and made Peter run fast, Wilcox knew. If Roberts knew, then Wilcox knew, then Wilcox ensured that everyone got out there fast.</p>
<p>Stiles looked at the house, it was mostly put out now, but he wasn't sure if it was savable or not.</p>
<p>"We heard gunfire," Peter said.</p>
<p>"Yes, the woman shot at us, so we returned fire until she finally gave up. I need to talk to someone about what happened."</p>
<p>"Well, for the most part, we have no clue what happened. We were having a party in the basement, and I heard someone yell fire. We tried to get out, but the door was blocked. Your son got the block mostly free, and I kicked the door off its hinges. We were afraid of going outside, so we went to the library and left through the secret door."</p>
<p>"Why does your library have a secret exit?"</p>
<p>"It used to be used for alcohol. My family had a few stills that were in use back then. We keep it up and make sure the area is well ready to be used. Gregory used it a few years ago to hide the family from Talia when we were surprising her for her birthday."</p>
<p>Stiles wasn't sure why his father was asking those questions, like Peter and his family were evil."</p>
<p>"Who yelled fire?"</p>
<p>"Me," Stiles said.</p>
<p>Noah looked at him as he stood up, his face becoming stern. "And how did you know about the fire?"</p>
<p>"I was tired of being at home, so I went on a walk. I went a little further than I thought I was going, and then I heard these talking about fire, and I followed them. They met up with the woman, and before I could figure out what they were doing, they were setting the house on fire."</p>
<p>"How did you end up with the Hales?" Noah asked.</p>
<p>"They weren't leaving, and I didn't know why so there was a gap in the fire in the back, and I went inside and helped get the door unblocked. I helped," Stiles said.</p>
<p>Noah was looking at Stiles like he didn't know his son. Stiles tried to keep his eyes locked on his father, but he wasn't sure he could. He looked away and looked at Peter, who was looking at Stiles' father like he didn't like him. Stiles really hoped that they didn't start to fight.</p>
<p>"So the three people are gone?" Peter asked.</p>
<p>"Yes," Noah said.</p>
<p>"Good. Then I will go and get my family."</p>
<p>"I would like two deputies to go with you," Noah said.</p>
<p>"Sure. Roberts and Wilcox, I trust them," Peter said.</p>
<p>"I wanna go, too," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"You will stay here. I want the EMTs to look over you. You have soot on your face," Noah said.</p>
<p>"Dad!"</p>
<p>"No," Noah said.</p>
<p>"It's okay; I promise we will all be back," Peter said as he crouched down and thumbed at Stiles' cheek like he was cleaning it off. Stiles recoiled a little to get away like he used to do to his mother. Peter laughed a little, but the laugh didn't reach his eyes.</p>
<p>Stiles stayed with his father as Roberts and Wilcox headed off with Peter. He was tired and looked at the time on his cell phone. It was something cheap and only had the ability to text and call, but since he was home alone a lot, his father wanted him to have a phone, especially with him riding his bike to and from school most days.</p>
<p>It was half an hour before they came back. Stiles saw that Cora was with them.</p>
<p>"DAD!" someone yelled.</p>
<p>Stiles spun around to look at where the yell came from. He saw two older teenagers running over to the Hales. The deputies tried to stop them, but the two of them dodged all of them. Stiles was pretty sure the one who had yelled was Derek Hale. He thought that maybe the girl was his older sister. Stiles couldn't remember her name.</p>
<p>"Why was Kate here?" Derek asked.</p>
<p>"Kate?" Noah asked as he walked over to where the Hales were, tugging Stiles along with him.</p>
<p>"I-" Derek stopped and looked at Noah, then at Stiles before looking back at his family.</p>
<p>"Son?" Noah asked.</p>
<p>"Why do you care about my girlfriend?" Derek asked.</p>
<p>"Son, just answer the question. Kate who?"</p>
<p>"Kate Middle," Derek said.</p>
<p>Noah hummed and looked at another deputy. "Gregs, do you have that array already?"</p>
<p>"Yes."</p>
<p>A deputy ran over and handed a sheet to him.</p>
<p>"Son, I need you to tell me if one of these women is your girlfriend."</p>
<p>Stiles saw the sheet and was shocked that all of them looked like adults. He looked at Derek's face as he looked at the sheet. Then on the last image, he saw Derek's eyes widen in shock. He pointed at the picture.</p>
<p>"Thank you," Noah said.</p>
<p>"Sheriff?" Peter asked.</p>
<p>"Son, you and I will have to have a long talk with your parents. You will all need to come to the station to give a statement. Deputies Wilcox and Roberts will stay with you all. I can assign more if you want."</p>
<p>"No, they will be fine," the one woman said.</p>
<p>"Of course, Talia," Noah said.</p>
<p>Stiles knew that Talia was Cora's mother. It was interesting to see how she and Cora looked very little alike. Stiles looked at the other adults and picked out the man who was Cora's father. Now that things were calm, Stiles could pick out who was who. He still wasn't sure about what was up with the Hales. They weren't human though, Stiles knew that.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Stiles waited three weeks. During those three weeks, he spent as much time online as possible and tried to figure out what the Hales were. He had many weird things that they could be, but none of them fit except for Werewolf. At least nothing based on what he could find online. He knew that what he could find online might not be exactly correct on what they were, but it was at least a starting point.</p>
<p>Kate Argent was being tried with several things, many counts of attempted murder, using a false ID to take a job, faking credentials to get said job. She hadn't even gone to college, so there was no way she could teach classes as a substitute teacher, much less teach swimming. Then there was the big one, statutory rape. Stiles had to look that one up as it was a case his father had never brought up around him before. He didn't like it. He hated that Derek had been subjected to that, even if he didn't know Derek at all. It was the talk of the town, and Stiles had been in the one diner that his father liked when he had heard a few people talking about it. Stiles had learned that the Argent woman had admitted it all when she had been in the jail cell with many people around. Her lawyer had tried to shut her up, but she hadn't. Argent had called Derek a beast, which Stiles took to mean that she had tried to kill the Hales because they were not human. Which Stiles knew based on what he had seen.</p>
<p>Stiles was just shocked that the Hales hadn't come around to talk to him. It was now almost Valentine's Day, and still, Stiles hadn't seen them. Cora had been pulled out of school and was being homeschooled after the tragic near loss of the entire family. The mayor took a leave of absence but still worked on things with Stiles' father if he needed the help.</p>
<p>It was sheer dumb luck, to quote Professor McGonagall, that Stiles had slipped into the coffee shop he liked to get tea from to find Peter Hale sitting at a table with a book in front of him. Stiles figured that he knew that Stiles had come in. If he was a Werewolf, he had to smell Stiles. Unless he didn't do that kind of thing in public, many people had to be a lot of scents. Stiles ordered his tea with no sugar since he was still very careful about that, so his father didn't have a hyper child on his hands when he tried to wind down from work. The fire had given Stiles one thing, his father hadn't drunk more than a single beer with dinner since it. Stiles figured that it was something about nearly losing Stiles to the fire.</p>
<p>Stiles was still grounded for going out late in the day, being in the Preserve at all, and running into a burning building, but Stiles was okay with that. He really was okay with that because it meant he saved people. His name was being kept out of the papers since he was a minor child, and the deputies were making sure to not talk about it. Stiles was allowed out to get himself a treat after school, which was why he was here now.</p>
<p>"Hello, Stiles," Peter said as Stiles sat down across from him with his tea.</p>
<p>"Hello," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"How is grounded life treating you?" Peter asked.</p>
<p>Stiles shrugged. He didn't know what he could say to Peter, and he was afraid that he would say more than he meant.</p>
<p>"I see you are allowed out for a little yard time," Peter said.</p>
<p>"Dad knows I will go nuts if I am stuck at home. I can always go into the station and hang around. Everyone looks at me weird, though."</p>
<p>The deputies all looked at Stiles like he was some kind of person on a pedestal. Wilcox and Roberts were both acting weird around him, which given what Stiles had figured out, he thought was because he had saved their Pack. Stiles had figured out that it was probably the Mayor who was the Pack's Alpha, but he wasn't sure who was whatever else kind of seconds she had. That area was really iffy online.</p>
<p>"I hear from someone that you are a good researcher," Peter said.</p>
<p>Stiles shrugged.</p>
<p>"Ah, you don't want to talk here. Well, I can take care of that." Peter pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number. He kept the phone to where Stiles couldn't see the numbers he pressed. "Hello, may I speak with Sheriff Stilinski? This is Peter Hale."</p>
<p>Stiles just about reached over and pulled the phone from his hand.</p>
<p>"Hello, Noah. Yes, I wanted to talk to you about having Stiles over to the house. Cora wants to play with him since he knows everything that went on and won't ask stupid questions like being in a burning house. Well, anytime. Maybe even right now? Stiles just came into the coffee shop I am in to get a cup of Earl Grey tea."</p>
<p>Stiles glared at Peter.</p>
<p>"Of course, you can speak to him." Peter held out the phone to Stiles.</p>
<p>"Stiles?" Noah asked as soon as Stiles got the phone to his head.</p>
<p>"Hey, Daddio."</p>
<p>"Son, did he approach you?" Noah asked.</p>
<p>"No, I sat at his table. I wanted to know how Cora is doing. I would like to go and see her if I can."</p>
<p>"Is your homework done?"</p>
<p>"Everything but the math worksheet, but I can do that tonight after dinner."</p>
<p>"I will be working late. Let me talk to Peter again."</p>
<p>"Noah," Peter said, and the tone sounded a little fond. Stiles narrowed his eyes at Peter. His father didn't need to date. The last time that anyone had brought it up, his father had drunk himself into a stupor. "Of course. I'll gladly make sure to feed him. If you want, he can stay the night as well. I pass the school on my way to work every morning. Oh, I see. Well, I will talk to Talia. Of course, I'll stop at the house, and he can get a few days' worth of clothes."</p>
<p>Stiles raised an eyebrow at that. Peter just glared at him, so Stiles crossed his arms and pouted.</p>
<p>"Of course, you are more than welcome to head out at any point. The new house is not where Talia would like it, but it will do until the old house can be rebuilt."</p>
<p>Stiles knew that the Hales had moved into a large house on the edge of town, on the other side of the Preserve compared to their old house. The Hales had been the town's talk for the past near month. Stiles knew all of the gossips, but he knew gossip that no one else did.</p>
<p>Peter and his father talked a few more minutes before he hung up. "Your father says that you can stay a few nights at our place since he's going to be working a good bit. Talia will gladly welcome it. Your father also said something about pills."</p>
<p>"Adderall. Did he tell you where they are? I take one in the morning and then a smaller dose before leaving school. The nurse gives those to me. I can drink caffeine as it helps me focus, but sugar makes me jittery when I take in too much. Dessert is fine, but no pop."</p>
<p>"We don't really have pop in the house anyway. We don't have a lot of tea either. We used to, but I have not picked up much from the store I like. Do you drink tea often?"</p>
<p>"With every meal. Dad has some herbal ones that I really like to drink with dinner. We have a pitcher of each kind of tea in the fridge, so I can get it all the time if I want."</p>
<p>"Hmm, then we will make a stop there on the way home. We need to get you home to pick up what you need for a few days."</p>
<p>"Something happened, didn't it? Dad would never let me stay with strangers that I don't know all that well unless something happened."</p>
<p>"You are smart Stiles. I'll tell you about it when we are in the car."</p>
<p>Stiles nodded his head. He got up and carried his cup of tea to the counter to get it changed out into a to-go cup.</p>
<p>"Leaving so soon?"</p>
<p>"I'm going to play with my friend Cora. Dad's letting me off being grounded for being out past when I should so I can hang out with Cora." Stiles smiled at the barista as he watched her pour the tea over into a new cup. Stiles took it when she handed it over, and he smiled at her before turning to follow Peter outside. It looked like Peter wanted to lay a hand on his shoulder or something, but he didn't. It was something that Stiles was sure he had seen the older people in Cora's life do. It was kind of really nice to know that Peter wanted to do it to him.</p>
<p>Stiles kept his words to himself and didn't ask until they were done at his house. He had packed up enough clothes and books to keep him occupied. He had an old duffel bag of his father's that he used. It was usually only used when they went on camping trips. Then they were on their way to the tea shop that Peter was talking about. It would take a little while it was on the other side of town.</p>
<p>"So you are a Werewolf?" Stiles asked.</p>
<p>Peter's hands tightened on the steering wheel, but he thankfully didn't jerk the wheel or anything like that.</p>
<p>"I told Talia that you were not stupid. Like I said, I've found out that you are a very smart young man who researches the weirdest things. How long did it take you to find that?"</p>
<p>"Three days, but then I spent time making sure that you didn't fit anything that was really obscure," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Yes, we are Werewolves."</p>
<p>"And Wilcox and Roberts are as well, aren't they? Wilcox has done a few things before that make me think he's weird, and when I started to learn about Werewolves online, I matched up a few things."</p>
<p>"Sean told Matthew that you were going to figure that part out. Yes, they are as well. You are very intuitive."</p>
<p>"I get that from my parents."</p>
<p>"Not just your father?"</p>
<p>"No, mom was smart as well. She was pretty smart, but she was too flighty to do more than a substitute. She needed to take care of me anyway. Then she got sick."</p>
<p>"Yes, I know about that. Talia was unsure if she could cure her, but we talked with a few other Packs, and what she had, there was no cure for it, even a Werewolf bite."</p>
<p>"I understand."</p>
<p>"You really don't, but I know that you do as much as you can at your age."</p>
<p>Stiles nodded his head as Peter pulled into a parking lot. He got out and looked at Stiles with a raised eyebrow when he didn't get out of the car. Stiles scrambled out and rushed to the door where Peter held it open. The smell of the shop was the same. It was where he and his father went to get tea when Stiles had been learning what he liked. It was a really nice place, and Stiles loved it.</p>
<p>"Hello, Mischief," Yolanda said as she leaned over the counter. "What are you doing with this rogue?"</p>
<p>"He's taking me to hang out with Cora since Dad has to work and can't take me."</p>
<p>"Ah, well, that will be fun. Do you need more tea?"</p>
<p>"Yes, everything that he normally drinks so that we can have it on hand, please."</p>
<p>"He going to be with you a while?" Yolanda asked.</p>
<p>"He's been visiting a lot. Noah's swamped with the case against the Argent woman and everything from the fallout of that. He feels a little better knowing that Stiles is with someone instead of home alone, especially so close to the death of his mother."</p>
<p>"I understand that. So your teas as well, Peter?"</p>
<p>"Yes, please. And some of each of the new ones since last time."</p>
<p>"I'll pull up your chart."</p>
<p>"Chart? Stiles asked.</p>
<p>"I try all of her teas and tell her if I like them or not. I have a few standards, which are what she is getting me now. I also keep track of what my family likes."</p>
<p>"Would you like a chart?" Yolanda asked.</p>
<p>Stiles nodded his head. He looked at the new range of teas, and there was a peach one that sounded really good. He looked at the price and realized that there wasn't a lot he could buy with the allowance that he had with what he was getting of his normal teas.</p>
<p>"Get me a good bit of the peach one, there, sweetheart. I love the sound of it."</p>
<p>Stiles didn't react to Peter being right behind him.</p>
<p>Yolanda worked quickly, and when it was time to pay, all of the tea was put onto Peter's credit card.</p>
<p>"But I have money," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"I know that you do, but I really don't care. This is going to my house, so I pay for it. Just like your father pays for your stuff at his house."</p>
<p>Stiles glared at him a little bit but nodded his head. He watched as Peter took the bags and handed over a single sucker. It looked like it was flavored like peach tea, so Stiles gladly unwrapped it and stuck it into his mouth.</p>
<p>Stiles tried to talk to Peter once they were in the car.</p>
<p>"Once we are home. Talia and Greg are there, and I would rather just discuss it once."</p>
<p>Stiles nodded his head and went back to sucking on the sucker and looking out into the streets. He wasn't used to being in this area of town. It was the pricey end of town, as his father called it.</p>
<p>"Peter, I heard that you had kidnapped a child," Greg said as he met Peter at the door of the car.</p>
<p>"His father knows exactly where he is. We will have another mouth to feed for a few days."</p>
<p>"Peter?"</p>
<p>"Inside, and I'm only saying it once. Stiles will be there for it as well; his father told me that if I try and hide things, he will do exactly what I don't want him to do."</p>
<p>Stiles looked up at Greg and grinned. He was a little shit, and he was told that a lot, usually by deputies.</p>
<p>"So that's why Sean and Matthew are here," Greg said.</p>
<p>"I would assume. Also, he figured it out. He asked me point blank if I was a Werewolf. So he figured us out from just that night."</p>
<p>"Yes, well, Wilcox said that Stiles could figure out anything that he wanted to. He just assumed that Stiles didn't care that we were weird."</p>
<p>"Three-week research spiral," Stiles said.</p>
<p>Peter laughed before waving him inside. "Stiles needs a snack and some more tea. I have his medication with me, so he will need to take that in the morning. There is a sheet of paper that tells us when."</p>
<p>"His father told you where he keeps his pills?" Wilcox asked when the trio made it into the kitchen.</p>
<p>"I'm staying here," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Peter?" Talia asked.</p>
<p>"High alert, no one leaves except for the adults. Greg, you'll need to stay here as well to protect the kids."</p>
<p>"What's wrong?" Talia asked.</p>
<p>"Gerard is in town," Wilcox said.</p>
<p>"He arrived and yelled at the Sheriff before storming out. There is a restraining order being set up right now to keep Gerard from the Sheriff's house. I guess that he made a few threats against Stiles." Roberts looked pissed as he talked.</p>
<p>"According to Noah, Gerard's exact words were something about how the Sheriff would feel if it was his son who was being charged with a heinous crime that he didn't do. No matter that she was caught on the property with the materials in her and she opened fire on the cops after they had said who they were. He holds that she is being framed for everything. Which we all know she is not. He was going to have Stiles stay at the station since he needs to work, but I provided the perfect opportunity."</p>
<p>"To get him caught in the crossfire?" Talia asked.</p>
<p>"How would it look if we were gone after again, especially with keeping the Sheriff's son here? He's already spreading it to all of his deputies about it. So the whole town will know that Stiles is here. The FBI is set to arrive later today. They are making this a federal case as it seems that she might have done this before. There are a few similarities to another two cases."</p>
<p>"Who is arriving?" Wilcox asked.</p>
<p>"The Sheriff said it was two members of the BAU. A doctor and a Supervisory Special Agent."</p>
<p>"Names?" Wilcox asked.</p>
<p>"He didn't give them; why?"</p>
<p>"The main BAU team has a second who is an Alpha Werewolf. If he's the one arriving, it will mean that the FBI will support whatever he says."</p>
<p>"And you've never told us this; why?"</p>
<p>"I told you that there were work aspects I couldn't talk about," Wilcox said to Talia's questions.</p>
<p>Stiles felt a little like he was watching tennis with how his head moved around to look at everyone. Peter was working on the tea, which Stiles liked, and then he set out a tray of fruits and veggies from the fridge. He grabbed a fork and handed the whole thing over to Stiles, sliding it across the counter in the kitchen.</p>
<p>"Greg, a chair for Stiles."</p>
<p>Stiles looked at Greg and saw him slip away and come back with a stool that was just the right height for him. He waited until it was set down and then climbed up onto it to sit down. He grabbed the fork and started to eat some of the veggies before grabbing a bite of honeydew.</p>
<p>"The Sheriff would like one of us to take him to and from school each day. He's already made it plain that no one has the right to sign Stiles in and out of school except for him. He will add in the three of us tomorrow morning. He included his deputies in that, on not getting him out. He's worried about what Gerard will do to Stiles to try and get his daughter off on the charges. The FBI will not be happy about threats against a child for something that a grown assed adult did."</p>
<p>"You are attached to this boy," Talia said.</p>
<p>"He saved our lives. He risked his life to run inside and figure out why no one was leaving the house. He has since looked into who we are and figured out for himself that we are Werewolves, yet hasn't freaked out and gone crying to the city that we are beasts."</p>
<p>"That's what the lady who tried to kill you called you. It's kind of like racism, right? They hate you for how you are born and paint a whole race of people as beasts to make it okay in their mind to kill them."</p>
<p>"You are well versed for a boy your age," Talia said.</p>
<p>"I have ADHD and a computer. I learn a little about a lot of things. Also, my friend I had a few years ago was Jewish. His father got a new job in Seattle, and so he moved, but he dealt with a few other kids who were stupid and hated him because their families didn't like him because he was Jewish. It wasn't even because he was an asshole."</p>
<p>'Language, Stiles," Roberts said.</p>
<p>"Make me," Stiles said back. He looked at Roberts and stuck his tongue out. "You are going to drive Peter up a wall and down the other side."</p>
<p>"I thought that I could pick him up from school and take him to my office," Peter said.</p>
<p>"Oh, where do you work?" Stiles asked.</p>
<p>"Hale, Hale, and Whittemore," Peter said.</p>
<p>"Hale and Hale?" Stiles looked at Talia and then at Greg.</p>
<p>"Our mother was the other Hale, and the name was kept in her memory. I'm not a full partner yet, but I will be soon. Talia was the other Hale, of course, until she decided to run for mayor and got it."</p>
<p>"Wait, like Jackson Whittemore, Whittemore?" Stiles asked.</p>
<p>"Yes, that's the name of David's son."</p>
<p>Ugh, he's a butthole."</p>
<p>Wilcox laughed and looked at Roberts with a grin. Roberts just shook his head.</p>
<p>"You are going to give me premature grey hair," Roberts said.</p>
<p>"You always say that, but you still have no grey hairs," Stiles said back. He speared a grape with his fork, which caused another to go rolling. Peter snagged it up and tossed it up to catch it in his mouth.</p>
<p>"Peter, I do not envy you at all. You get to deal with Mischief in his full measure."</p>
<p>"Yes, I never did get to ask why your name is Mischief. I heard your father call you it the night of the fire."</p>
<p>"I couldn't pronounce my first name when I was younger. Mischief was the closest, and therefore it became my name. I took on Stiles when the school didn't like to have a kid being called Mischief in their midst. So I became Stiles after hearing my father calling someone it. I only found out later it was the name that was passed down the family from old times. Only my grandfather was an emotionally and verbally abusive asshole. I think he was also physically, but my father won't admit that one. So yeah. I tried to change it, but Dad said it was time someone good had the name."</p>
<p>"Sounds like it was time."</p>
<p>Stiles shrugged and started to eat more food. He let the adults talk about him and what they were going to do with him.</p>
<p>"Where is Cora?" Stile asked a little while later.</p>
<p>"She's with Derek and Spencer in the den room we made up. It is spelled so that no sounds make it into there from out here."</p>
<p>"So magic is real too? I assume given you know...grr" Stiles made claws with his hands and slashed forward with them. Peter laughed. "However it's nice to know that it's real."</p>
<p>"Yes, very much real and very much part of your life. Normal humans can break Mountain Ash barriers, but it's hard for ones like what were placed around the house by Kate. It was a very special blend that was used in magic to where only the person who blessed the powder can break it. yet you did."</p>
<p>"Not who set it?"</p>
<p>"No, especially since Kate Argent didn't have any magic. She could have set it easily but breaking it is another matter with that spell that was on it."</p>
<p>"How do you know?"</p>
<p>"I know the spell. I had a trusted human try and set the line again, but it didn't work. That means it was spelled. I had someone else look at the remains that I could pick up. She said it was pretty powerful. She couldn't track the spell caster for the powder, though."</p>
<p>"Sounds like a lot of fun," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"What does?"</p>
<p>"Magic," Stiles, Wilcox, and Roberts said simultaneously.</p>
<p>"Jinx," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"Don't give him Coke," Roberts said.</p>
<p>"Ah, you are no fun. Besides, I like Mountain Dew better."</p>
<p>"I think maybe it's time for you to head to where the other kids are. Sean," Peter said as he looked up at Wilcox.</p>
<p>"You got it, Peter. Come along. Bring your school bag with you. Homework waits for no child."</p>
<p>"Aww, but I like homework," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"The bad thing is he means it," Roberts said.</p>
<p>"Derek loved school as well," Peter said. </p>
<p>Stiles wondered just what Derek thought about school now. </p>
<p>It didn't take long for Stiles to find the room that the rest of the Hales were in. Cora was reading a book with a pair of headphones in. </p>
<p>Derek had the young boy on his chest as he reclined in a chair. Derek sat up a straighter as he looked at Stiles.</p>
<p>"Hi," Derek said.</p>
<p>"Hi. Who is this?" Stiles asked as he waved at the boy on Derek's chest. </p>
<p>"This is Spencer. He's my youngest brother." </p>
<p>"He's cute," Stiles said.</p>
<p>"He's hyper as hell. He's small for his age, but he's pretty good when he's able to settle down."</p>
<p>"Settle down?" Stiles asked.</p>
<p>"He's a little hyper, and he can focus onto something sometimes, but the rest of the time, he bounces from thing to thing to thing. His teacher puts him in timeout thirty times a day."</p>
<p>"Ah," Stiles said. He walked over to where Derek was with Spencer, who was still asleep on Derek's chest. "Who is his teacher?"</p>
<p>"Mrs. Ranch," Derek said.</p>
<p>"Well, see about getting him moved to Miss Marble's class. She worked wonders with me and my ADHD." </p>
<p>"ADHD?"</p>
<p>"Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Miss Marble is how I was diagnosed with it. I was the grade before, but then I was placed into her class with her asking for it to happen. She can help, I promise. I really like her. When things get too much, she still lets me sit in her room and focus on the kids." </p>
<p>"I'll talk to mom about that." </p>
<p>Stiles nodded his head, and he reached out to run his hand down Spencer's back. </p>
<p>"Thank you, Stiles, for saving us. I'll protect you with my life forever," Derek said.</p>
<p>"You don't owe me anything."</p>
<p>"I do. I owe you everything," Derek said. </p>
<hr/>
<p>Stiles felt hands on his shoulders, and he leaned back into them, holding onto the child in his arms a little tighter. </p>
<p>"Ashley will kill you if you squeeze him too hard," Derek said. </p>
<p>"Pffff, Ashley loves me. I'm his second favorite, well now the third favorite person in the world."</p>
<p>Derek laughed and pressed a kiss to the back of Stiles' head. </p>
<p>"How is everything going?" Derek asked.</p>
<p>"Good. We are all set. Just need the rest of the guests." Stiles looked to see the rest of the Hales slowly making their way toward them. Ashley was in the middle of them with Spencer tucked into his side. </p>
<p>"I'll take him," Derek said as he took the baby from Stiles. </p>
<p>The baby cried a little but settled as soon as he was in Derek's warm embrace. </p>
<p>"He's a wolf or will be. How does he like you better?"</p>
<p>"Magic, that's how. Cora's rugrat liked me better as well, and she is human." Stiles stepped up to the clearing and looked up at the moon above. He smiled as the moon finally got into position. </p>
<p>The moon began to shine all over, giving the area an ethereal look. Stiles looked at his husband of nearly a decade and smiled as he held onto Spencer's child. Derek was still so thankful that Stiles had saved his family. There were times where Stiles thought that it was the only reason that Derek loved him but then when Derek smiled at him, Stiles knew. Stiles knew that Derek loved him more than anyone else in the world besides his family. </p>
<p>Tonight they were welcoming into the family and into the pack many new members, but mostly the two newborns: Cora's second child and Spencer and Ashley's first. Derek and Stiles were soon to be adopting a few kids. It was going to be great when they could bring them home. The three needed them, a loss of their entire Pack due to a small group of Hunters that had gone rogue when one of the Hunters was pissed off that a girl he had been sweet on had married a Werewolf instead of him. The kids had been out at friends, and about and a small dose of wolfsbane had quieted the baby to where he didn't make a sound. Seven dead, six adults and a teenager, when it was said and done. The wolfsbane had been wearing off about the time the cops showed up and then the kids. Chris Argent had smoothed the way for Stiles and Derek to adopt them. Stiles' job as the local runner of the magic shop made it easy for him to watch the older two kids during the day at the shop when they weren't in school and the baby all the time. Derek was a deputy under Stiles' father, and so he would help when he could.</p>
<p>"I love you," Derek said.</p>
<p>Stiles turned to look at Derek with a smile on his face before he reached out to take Cora's child from her. Derek stepped up to hold the other baby just how Stiles needed. The spell to welcome them into the pack and protect them was simple, and it could be done at any point in the year, but Stiles liked doing it on the Wolf Moon. It allowed him to welcome others who had come into the pack and build strong bonds between everyone. He looked at his father, who was standing between Chris Argent and Peter. He looked happy, happier than he had been in a long while, even though the triad part of the relationship was new.</p>
<p>This was his family, and just like he had proven when he was younger, he would do anything to protect them.</p>
<h1>The End</h1>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I write fanfiction for fun. It's a hobby and a stress relief. I refuse to stress over my writing. What you see is what you get. Errors, plot holes, and all. Thank you for reading my story! </p>
<p>I can be found on MeWe <a href="https://mewe.com/i/beccaqueen1">here</a>, join me there and we can discuss my fics and whatnot.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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